There are points in history that you will always remember where you were at when they occurred. For my parents generation, it was John Kennedy's assassination. For the generation after me, it was 9-11. For my generation, it was when the space shuttle, Challenger, exploded right after lift off. Today marks the 28th anniversary of the Challenger tragedy. It was an exciting time in education, as teacher Christa McAuliffe was on board and was going to do lessons from space. I was in the 4th grade at Ellsworth
AFB and some students went down to the library to get a TV. They returned to the classroom and told our
teacher that our librarian said the shuttle blew up. I remember watching it over and over that day (as I remember with 9-11). It was hard to believe it had happened... http://voices.suntimes.com/news/28-years-ago-today-the-challenger-disaster-touched-the-nation/ One of the things I remember the most about that day was watching what President Reagan had to say that evening. Even now, his words are powerful and moving.
As educators, we are preparing the next generations of explorers. Perhaps 28 years ago today, there was someone who watched these events unfold and decide to be a teachers, an engineer, or a NASA scientist. Know that what you do in your classroom each day and how you guide student through historical events, like this one, help shape the world of tomorrow.
Change can be difficult. It is uncomfortable. It can be messy. It can be well received or it can tank. Part of our job is to evaluate our performance in the classroom that day and determine if there is something we need to change. Maybe it was the way you presented a lesson or the manner in which you asked students to relay information back to you. When we first start out in education, our professors made us write reflection upon reflection, determining what, if anything, we should change about a lesson. As we do this job longer and longer, we often do not take the time to reflect and see what we should change. I encourage you all to take 5 minutes at the end of the day to reflect on what occurred in your classroom that day and what, if anything, you should change to ensure success for your students. We are being asked to implement a lot of different changes within our schools. These changes have caused all of us to re-evaluate how and what we instruct our students. It has meant sitting through in-services and workshops and many times feeling overwhelmed. We have thought, "Are you kidding me?" or "There is no way I can do this!". But after stepping back and taking a deep breath, we realize this is what our reality is. We either accept the change and do what is necessary or we put ourselves and our students at a HUGE disadvantage.
Like I said, change is uncomfortable...being pushed out of your "safe" zone is not always a good feeling. BUT...many times that push will lead you to bigger and better things. And we can all change. Change what we do...what and how we say things...and most importantly change how we are instructing this generation of students. Sometimes the smallest of changes yield the biggest results.
